Bearing construction



Dec. 11, 1934. L R, HE 1,984,213

BEARING CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 2, 1930 iiyz INVENTOR M W31; (Lab,

ATTORNEYS complement of rolls 4.

Patented Dec, 11, 1934 UNITED STATES PAT NT OFFICE 1,984,213,, BEARING CONSTRUCTION Lewis R. Heim, Mount Dora, Fla. Application August 2, 1930, Serial No. 472,549,

5Claims. (01. 308-217) Thisinvention relates to bearing construction but more particularly to bearings of the roller type. One of the objects of this invention is to provide a simple and durable device of the above nature which will be practical and efficient in action. Other objects are to provide an advantageous form of cage for rolls, to permit the use of more rolls in a bearing, thus easing the load on each individual roll, to provide simple and reliable means for maintaining the rolls in proper alignment, to increase the life of the bearing by reducing friction, to provide a device of ready assembly with negligible risk of creating a defective bearing through careless workmanship or any other cause, and in general provide, an improved bearing construction of this type. Another object is to provide a method of construction which will be practiced and readily carried on. Other objects will be in part obvious or i part pointed out hereinafter.

This invention accordingly consists in the fea tures of construction, combination of elements, and arrangement of parts, and in the several steps and relation thereof, all of which will be exemplified in the following specification, and the scope of the application 'of which will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing in which is shown one of the various possible embodiments of the mechanical features of this invention,

- Fig. 1 is an end elevation showing a section of the bearing in detail,

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the bearing construction,

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along 3-3 of Fig. 2,

l' ig.v 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of Fig. 1 showing in detail the relation of the rolls to thecage.

Similar references and characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views of the drawing. I

Referring now to the drawing in detail there is shown a shell or cage in which are mounted a At regular intervals about the circumferences of the substantially circular metal shell 2 is a series of slots 6 running laterally with the surface of the shell. These slots 6 are smaller than the diameter of the rolls 4, being about one-third of their diameter in the preferred construction as disclosed herein. It is to be understood, however, that this width is not to be construed in a limiting sense, for it has been found that different widths are more advantageous in particular circumstances the line created by the different loads to which the bearing may be subjected. 9

The ribs 18 formed in the circumference of the shell 2 by'the slots 4 are out inwardly at an angle on their opposite longitudinal sides 10. In this manner there isprovided a bed for the rolls 4 which although of simple construction and easy manufacture reduces friction to a minimum. It will also be seen that this construction is particularly adapted to operate just as effectively after the bearing has been subjected to the usual wear and tear of operation.

At the opposite ends of the slot 6, the periphery of the shell 2 is crimped outwardly to a position at substantially right angles with said periphery, thus forming walls 12 for the bearing and lateral retaining elements for the rolls. At regularly spaced intervals between the rolls on the upper portion of walls 12 are the indented members 14 extending a short distance toward the circumferential center of the shell 2. The opposite extremities of these indented portions 14 form retaining elements 16 lying closely adjacent to the surface of the rolls 2 and converging inwardly towards the base of the indented portion 1a to follow the periphery of the rolls 2. In this inanner an outer retaining member for the rolls is constructed which cooperates with the lower ribs 8 to form an efficient roll retaining element. It

should be noted that the retaining walls 16 do not lie flush against the rolls 2, and the distance therefrom is not arbitrary but must be suited to the particular-kind of work for which the bearing is designed.

Thisallows for a slight play in the bearing with consequent loss of frictional drag.

The bearing unit as above described may be constructed in various ways, but a preferred method is to form a length of sheet metal into a cylindrical tube of suitable diameter and to cut off sections of this tube at regular intervals to form cylindrical shells of predetermined length. Next, the opposite ends of these shells are crimpe c l to form flanges 12, and slots 4 are punched about the periphery running longitudinally of the shell. Rolls are then inserted in the slots 4 and held therein by any convenient means, and the flanges 12 are pressed between suitable dies to form projecting portions 14 at regular intervals between process often resolves itself into an extremely delicate operation. Great care must be exercised in the regulation of pressure on the respective dies in order to avoid a jam between one of the rolls and its retaining means. In the construction herein described such a difliculty is avoided for the pressure from the dies or other means is applied only to the indented portions 14 of the shell 2 and merely serves to push these portions further toward the circumferential center of the cage. Thus no pressure is applied to the parts at the opposite ends of the rolls with the consequent risk of a jam between the retaining means and the roll, but rather the pressure is applied to the member 14 whose side extremities 16 extend in a parallel plane with the periphery of the rolls, and as pointed out above, these extremities are not in immediate contact with the rolls. This simple construction serves to speed production while reducing the consequent risk of defective production through careless workmanship'or inefficient machinery. The bearing construction herein outlined assures a cheap product with no loss in effectiveness or reliability. It will be seen that the whole housing consists of a one piece metal shell which can easily be cut and shaped into the desired construction, thus avoiding a complicity of parts which does make the manufacture of the shell type of roller bearing more involved and time consuming.

It will be seen that there is provided a construction and an art of an essentially practical nature in which the several objects of this invention are attained.

As various changes in the construction and art herein described may be made without departing from the original scope of this invention, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawing is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

1. In a roller bearing, in combination, a substantially cylindrical shell having parallel slots extending longitudinally thereof, bearing rolls disposed about said shell having a diameter greater than the circumferential width of said slots and each lying partially within one of said slots, end flanges projecting angularly from said shell and integrally indented portions of said flanges disposed between said rolls near the outer edges of said flanges to retain said rolls upon said shell while permitting movement thereof about the axis of the shell against the parallel edges of said slots, said flanges being of metal of substantially uniform thickness and bent between the rolls to form said indented portions.

2. In a roller bearing, in combination, a substantially cylindrical shell formed of sheet metal having a series of parallel slots extending longitudinally thereof, angularly projecting flanges on said shell adjacent the ends thereof, and a series of bearing rolls disposed about said shell and each resting in one of said slots, the diameter of said rolls being greater than the width of the corresponding slot, said flanges being indented at intervals between said rolls near the edges of said flanges to retain said rolls in alignment with said slots while permitting movement of the rolls circumferentially of the shell limited by the edges of said slots, said flanges being of substantially uniform thickness.

3. In a roller bearing, in combination, a substantially cylindrical shell having longitudinal slots extending through its circumferential surface and having flanges at its opposite sides extending radially from said circumferential surface, a series of rolls disposed in said slots, said flanges having indented portions extending inwardly toward each other to overlap the ends of said rolls with surfaces substantially parallel to the cylindrical surfaces of said rolls, said indented portions being spaced from said circumferential surface and means limiting the movement of said rolls in a direction circumferential of the bearing in positions with their axes parallel to the axis of the bearing.

4. In a roller bearing, in combination, a sheet metal cylinder having flanges at each end extending about the same substantially at right angles thereto, said cylinder having formed therein a plurality of parallel slots, and a series of rolls respectively fitted within said slots and of a diameter greater than the Width of said slots in a circumferential direction, said flanges being bent inwardly at the Spaces between said rolls and at points outside the maximum diameter of said rolls to. provide shoulders loosely retaining the rolls within the slots and permitting them circumferential movement limited by the edges of said slots.

5. In a roller bearing, in combination, a sheet metal cylinder having flanges at each end extending about the same substantially at right angles thereto, said cylinder having formed therein a plurality of parallel slots, and a series of rolls respectively fitted within said slots and of a diameter greater than the width of said slots in a circumferential direction, said flanges being bent inwardly at the spaces between said rolls and at points outside the maximum diameter of said rolls to provide shoulders loosely retaining the rolls within the slots and permitting'them circumferential movement limited by the edges of said slots, and the edge portions of said slots being inclined to provide surfaces for the respective rolls to rest against.

LEWIS R. HEIM. 

